Power line signal coupler

ABSTRACT

A main power line (+ and − lines) is coupled to a power supply, for example a car battery, grounded to a vehicle chassis. Positive and negative main power lines are coupled to a power line gateway module, and spliced to carry power for a segment, until receiving, by splices, RF power line communications. The main power lines, now carrying power and RF power line communications are then coupled to remote modules. RF power line communication carries signal from the power line gateway module to a impedance matching network or a transformer are used to match impedances.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/646,266, filed 11 Jul. 2017 (now U.S. Pat. No. 10,128,906) which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/360,785, filed 11 Jul. 2016.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In electrical communications, as with any communications generally, clarity is key. Clarity may be difficult to achieve in a variety of environments in which clear communications are critical. For instance, communications at radio frequencies over direct current (DC) power busses is known. In some instances, however, reliability of such communications is interrupted by environmental noise and/or voltage spikes occurring on the power bus. Accordingly, the art of communications over or along a DC power bus may be enhanced by better filtering techniques.

Inductors are placed in power lines to add impedance to the lines. In this manner, RF signal can be carried by the lines.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A filter provides enhanced filtering of transient and spurious signals which may otherwise interfere with a communication signal. Such filter may be advantageously used in wired, noisy communication environments, such as communication environments provided on vehicles (e.g., automobiles, airplanes, boats, locomotives).

Systems of the present invention can inject a signal onto a power line a distance from ground. Inductance of a segment of wire is used in place of a discrete inductor.

A main power line (+ and − lines) is coupled to a power supply, for example a car battery, grounded to a vehicle chassis. Positive and negative main power lines are coupled to a power line gateway module, and spliced to carry power for a segment, until receiving, by splices, RF power line communications. The main power lines, now carrying power and RF power line communications are then coupled to remote modules. RF power line communication carries signal from the power line gateway module to an impedance matching network or a transformer are used to match impedances.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of circuitry of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a detail schematic view of the impedance matching network for impedance transformation of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a power line coupler of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a DC Power Line Network (“DPN”) diagram of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Although the disclosure hereof is detailed and exact to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, the physical embodiments herein disclosed merely exemplify the invention which may be embodied in other specific structures. While the preferred embodiment has been described, the details may be changed without departing from the invention.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a schematic view of circuitry of the present invention is shown. A battery 12 (for example a car battery, grounded to a vehicle chassis) carries a main power line (+ and − lines 24 and 20, respectively). An optional fuse 14 is provided on the positive line. Coming from the main positive and negative power lines 24 and 20, power lines 24 and 20 are spliced and coupled to module 16, or power line gateway module GW1002 to power the module. RF power line communication signals are provided by module 16, and carried by lines 22 from the module to impedance matching network (for impedance transformation) capacitor network 18 (discussed in FIG. 2 or 3). After impedance matching network 18, lines 22 go through optional fuse, capacitor or other form of wire protection 28, and are spliced with main positive and negative power lines 24 and 20 at splices 26. Splices 26 can comprise, for example, Scotchlok™ connectors by The 3M Company. Following the splices 26, the power lines 24 and 20, now carrying DC power (from battery 12) and RF communications (from module 16 GW1002), carry the DC power and RF communications downstream to a module or bank of modules (not shown) to power and control the modules. Splices off of main power lines 24 and 20 can be made to each module until power lines 24 and 20 terminate.

Still referring to FIG. 1, a desired length 32 of power wires 24 and 20 is preferred between the battery 12 and splices 26. In an exemplary embodiment operating at 4.5 MHz frequency, if length 32 was too short, communications issues could arise as length 32 would not provide enough effective inductance. As the length 32 of the conductor (power wires 24 and 20) increases, so too does the inductance. In a preferred embodiment, a roughly 1 μH (microhenry) inductance is desired in a system at impedance of 40 ohms (Ω), and resistance of 120 ohms. To achieve the desired inductance, the length and diameter of the power wires 24 and 20 can be changed to target the roughly 1 pH level of inductance. In an exemplary embodiment at 4.5 MHz frequency, for #8 wire, a length 32 of the conductor (power wires 24 and 20) is approximately 4′ to achieve the desired self inductance of length 32 of the conductor (power wires 24 and 20). It is preferred to provide length 32 of the conductor (power wires 24 and 20) long enough to provide a high enough impedance.

FIG. 2 is a detail schematic view of the impedance matching network 18 for impedance transformation used in the present invention. Wires 22 enter impedance matching network 18 from module 16, into preferably a circuit board with matching capacitors 36 and 38. In an exemplary embodiment, a 12 nF (nanofarad) capacitor 36 is matched with a 2.7 nF capacitor 38 in a first pair (upper in FIG. 2), and another 12 nF capacitor 36 is matched with a 2.7 nF capacitor 38 in a second pair (lower in FIG. 2). Between 2.7 nF capacitors 38, the unit can be center tapped to ground. Optionally, a capacitor 44/resistor 42 series can be provided to reduce a Q Factor. In this context, Q Factor is the bandwidth of the circuit, defined by the reactance of the circuit), and in this application, a lower Q Factor is desired to allow for wide tuning. In an alternate embodiment (not shown), a capacitor 44/resistor 42 series could be provided in module 16 instead of impedance matching network 18. Signal comes out of impedance matching network 18 with communication signals, 180 out of phase, through a matching network through lines 22 running in parallel with lines 24/20, to which lines 22 are spliced at splices 26.

Referring now to FIG. 3, an alternative capacitor arrangement of impedance matching network 18 is shown, with lines 22 entering into the system, and in an exemplary arrangement a first capacitor 48 (1.3 nF for example) is followed by pair of second capacitors 46 (12 nF for example), again optionally followed by capacitor 44/resistor 42 series. Signal comes out of impedance matching network 18 with communication signals, 180 out of phase, through a matching network through lines 22 running in parallel with lines 24/20, to which lines 22 are spliced at splices 26.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a DC Power Line Network (“DPN”) diagram of the present invention is shown. Because discrete inductors become expensive and unwieldy at currents above 30 A, a resonant wire section 62 or sections 62 of preferably between 0.5 and 3 meters are used to provide suitable impedance for signal coupling. Resonant wire sections 62 are more preferably between 0.75 and 2.5 meters, or more preferably between approximately 1 and 1.5 meters, and more preferably yet approximately 1.2 meters long. Additional wire between points B1, B2 and matching networks 66 can add to the inductance of the resonant wire sections 62. In this manner, a reactance of 25 to 30 ohms can be obtained at 4.5 MHz. Matching network 66 cancels the inductive reactance and increases the resistive impedance to prove a good match for the signal transceiver or modules 72.

The DPN physical layer comprises the power line bus 94, analog front end, and radio modem. Another layer can the data link layer which provides data transfer between Modules and CAN-Bus connections. Power source 74 (positive and negative connections) are typically connected to the power line bus 94 through one of the modules 72 and load power may be supplied through any module 72.

Still referring to FIG. 4, modules 72 are shown coupled to transmit amplifier or buffer 68, as well as receiving amplifier 70, both coupled to switch 64. Switch 64 is set to receive in FIG. 4, but can be switched to transmit (bi-directional). Through amplifiers 68 and 70, sine waves are transmitted and received, respectively, through transformer 78, resistors 90 in line and capacitors 46, 48 where indicated. From here, matching network 66 with capacitors 46, 48 are coupled also to points B1 and B2. From points A1 and A2 to points B1 and B2, resonant wire sections 62 are provided of the preferred length as shown. Between points A1, A2 and the matching network 66, inductors 60 are provided, preferably air cored.

Differential signal coupling is provided by a transformer 78 in the DPN system while CAN uses symmetrical transistor drive. To reduce radiated emissions, both systems preferably have passive components to be well matched to minimize common mode voltages on the bus.

Power sources 74 and loads often have a parallel capacitive reactance well below 10 ohms at the DPN carrier frequency. To ensure consistent performance in a variety of installations, inductive devices are used to control the impedance of the DPN-Bus. External termination resistors are not required on the power line bus 94 because one can be included in each module 72.

Although three terminations on the bus 94 are shown in FIG. 4, more or less can be provided. For instance, up to and including eight terminations on the bus 94 could cause some impedance mismatch and signal reflection, but they provide noise damping by absorbing voltage bursts common on power lines. Multiple terminations also reduce communication signal amplitude, but there is adequate operational margin since the receiver is sensitive to a signal 20 dB less than the transmitted signal.

It is also possible to attach any load to the power line bus 94 using a simplified module that does not include a coupling transformer 78 or transceiver when DPN communication is not required. The analog front end (AFE) of the Gateway Module is highly effective at separating data signals from noise. Power line noise is generated by a variety of devices. Passive inductive loads often require no EMC testing but, when wired to the power lines with mechanical switches or relays, they can generate voltage spikes in excess of 500 volts. The AFE blocks these transients and filters them out. Clamping, which binds the upper or lower extreme of a waveform to a fixed DC voltage level, is used sparingly because it will also clamp the communication signal during the event.

Even though voltage transients may contain little energy at the DPN carrier frequency, they could be problematic if filters are not properly designed. Putting a voltage transient into a sharply tuned filter is analogous to striking a mechanical tuning fork with a hammer the filter will ring at the carrier frequency and data will be masked by the internally generated signal.

Because vehicle chassis ground is sometimes used to return load current, the AFE is designed to operate with unbalanced DC currents in power and ground wires with little or no degradation in EMC performance. Also, since a DC bias will cause magnetic saturation of the high permeability ferrite materials in common mode chokes, they cannot be depended upon to balance the DPN carrier signal and are not included in the design.

The radio modem transmits and receives data packets on the power line in a format similar to J1939 CAN-Bus data. Phase modulation, in which data is encoded by varying the phase of the carrier (sine) wave, is used to communicate information. The phase changes modulate a carrier frequency of 4.5 MHz with a 6.5 MHz option. If noise obscures a single phase change during reception, the noise is ignored. This allows improved immunity to short noise spikes.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Furthermore, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described. While the preferred embodiment has been described, the details may be changed without departing from the invention, which is defined by the claims. 

We claim:
 1. A method of configuring an electrical circuit comprising: providing a resonant wire segment between a power source and a power line bus.
 2. A method according to claim 1, wherein said resonant wire section is between approximately 0.5 and 3 meters in length.
 3. A method according to claim 1, wherein said resonant wire section is between approximately 1 and 1.5 meters in length. 